153
153
Dec 7, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 153
favorite 0
quote 0
it's not a fiscal cliff but a slope. it's a gradual one. >> stooe, it's not right on to talk about people when they're right there. have some manners. do it behind their back. really, it's got for morale. there's a study and everything. >> if you can't say something nice to something, come on over here and tell it to me. no worries, you're among friends here. it's "the cycle." >>> two big developments on the economic front. first the unemployment numbers for november came out and they were way better than expected. we added a net gain of 146,000 jobs and the unemployment rate dropped to 7.7%, the lowest in four years. to steal a little from krystal, it appears it's obama and boehner one on one. there's no i in team but there's one in win, which is why the fiscal slope negotiations are getting serious. we haven't heard yet from the president but have heard from speaker boehner. >> this isn't a progress report, because there's no progress to report. the white house has wasted another week. it's time for the president, if h
it's not a fiscal cliff but a slope. it's a gradual one. >> stooe, it's not right on to talk about people when they're right there. have some manners. do it behind their back. really, it's got for morale. there's a study and everything. >> if you can't say something nice to something, come on over here and tell it to me. no worries, you're among friends here. it's "the cycle." >>> two big developments on the economic front. first the unemployment numbers for...
160
160
Dec 4, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 160
favorite 0
quote 0
that's really what the crux of this fiscal cliff negotiation -- what these fiscal cliff negotiations are all about. they're about fairness. when the president and congressional democrats talk about the need for balanced approach, to deficit reduction and dealing with the fiscal cliff, we're talking about fairness. we're talking about making sure that if you work hard and play by the rules everyone has a chance to succeed. that the middle class needs certainly tight right now. speaker pelosi and my colleague congressman tim walls, filed a discharge petition today to take the bill that we have, that has already passed the senate, that grants certainty to the middle class, to take that bill up and make sure that we can extend the middle class tax breaks before the holidays where we can give -- that's what everyone agrees on. i don't know any republican or democrat that thinks we should let those tax rates -- tax cuts for the middle class expire. so we should pass that now. and then on the things that we're having more trouble agreeing on, we should sit down at the table. the one thing i
that's really what the crux of this fiscal cliff negotiation -- what these fiscal cliff negotiations are all about. they're about fairness. when the president and congressional democrats talk about the need for balanced approach, to deficit reduction and dealing with the fiscal cliff, we're talking about fairness. we're talking about making sure that if you work hard and play by the rules everyone has a chance to succeed. that the middle class needs certainly tight right now. speaker pelosi and...
128
128
Dec 3, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 128
favorite 0
quote 0
no one fell off stage or fiscal no one fell off stage or fiscal cliff. ♪ the weather outside is frightful ♪ ♪ but the fire is so delightful ♪ nothing melts away the cold like a hot, delicious bowl of chicken noodle soup from campbell's. ♪ let it snow, let it snow >>> a twilight wedding, watch out for flying bears and the pope goes hi-tech. who knew it was even available? a university of las vegas grad student said she is going marry twilight's edward cohen. actually it's a cardboard cut out of actor robert posing as the vampire. she's doing it as a thesis project and has a commentary on the two sides of las vegas, the real and the fantasy. >>> it was raining bears in hershey, pennsylvania, literally. almost 13,000 of them. an annual fundraiser for are the children's miracle network. fans were encourage tlod the stuffed anim bears on the rink. >>> amazing show of support for a massachusetts woman fighting cancer. a flash mob was organized outside of her hospital room in boston. more than 200 friends and co-workers gathered into the shape of a heart so she could see it from her wind
no one fell off stage or fiscal no one fell off stage or fiscal cliff. ♪ the weather outside is frightful ♪ ♪ but the fire is so delightful ♪ nothing melts away the cold like a hot, delicious bowl of chicken noodle soup from campbell's. ♪ let it snow, let it snow >>> a twilight wedding, watch out for flying bears and the pope goes hi-tech. who knew it was even available? a university of las vegas grad student said she is going marry twilight's edward cohen. actually it's a...
151
151
Dec 5, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 151
favorite 0
quote 0
let love shine. >>> act three of the fiscal cliff theater piece begins today. it is wednesday, december 5th, and this is "now." >>> joining me today benjamin wallace wells of "new york" magazine, the "washington post's" melinda headenberger, msnbc political analyst and former dnc communications director karen finney and senior national correspondent for bloomberg business week josh green. round three has begun. two days after the republican fiscal cliff counter offer, both sides are coming out swings. speaker john boehner defended his proposal this morning, adopting a page from the dem's fairness playbook. >> the revenues we're putting on the table are going to come from, guess who? the rich. closing loopholes, especially on those who are wealthy, is a better way to raise this revenue than raising
let love shine. >>> act three of the fiscal cliff theater piece begins today. it is wednesday, december 5th, and this is "now." >>> joining me today benjamin wallace wells of "new york" magazine, the "washington post's" melinda headenberger, msnbc political analyst and former dnc communications director karen finney and senior national correspondent for bloomberg business week josh green. round three has begun. two days after the republican fiscal...
198
198
Dec 7, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 198
favorite 0
quote 0
what do these numbers mean and what do they portend for the fiscal cliff negotiations? >> it strengthens the president's hand. it was a good number, not great, because of some of the revisions we saw to previous months but the president can tout a record of job creation, so that's encouraging. the unemployment rate went down to 7.7% for some of the wrong reasons. a lot of people left the labor force. that's not something you want to see. you want to see more people coming into the labor force, encouraged that they have a chance at getting a job. nonetheless, 146,000 jobs created. that's good for the president. gives him a chance to go out there and have some momentum going into the fiscal cliff talks. i was just at the speaker's press conference down the hall at the top of last hour and he said look, there's no progress being made and his call with the president was just more of the same and the staff talks behind the scenes yesterday were more of the same. he didn't give us a whole lot of optimism going into this weekend here, alex. >> here's my question. i have many q
what do these numbers mean and what do they portend for the fiscal cliff negotiations? >> it strengthens the president's hand. it was a good number, not great, because of some of the revisions we saw to previous months but the president can tout a record of job creation, so that's encouraging. the unemployment rate went down to 7.7% for some of the wrong reasons. a lot of people left the labor force. that's not something you want to see. you want to see more people coming into the labor...
136
136
Dec 5, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 136
favorite 0
quote 0
>> well, just look at speaker boehner's fiscal cliff proposal. three-page letter with three simple bullet points. that's the entire proposal to deal with the fiscal cliff and starts out with the sentence that's remarkable, tamron. first sentence is because the election is a status quo, both sides have to compromise. they didn't see what happened. they just dismissed it as a status quo election and this is not just speaker boehner we eric cantor and paul ryan, kevin mccarthy. the entire house republican leadership signed on to the so-called fiscal cliff proposal letter. they're not serious about negotiating. i don't know the right wing and the tea party of who the republican party is nowadays but it's impossible to have a deal with one side refuses to compromise even after losing. they will not accept their own defeat. >> right. >> and that is the problem. >> a.b. let's play what congressman walter jones had to say on this boehner purge. i have the full screen of what he had to say when several members were removed as identified not being team pla
>> well, just look at speaker boehner's fiscal cliff proposal. three-page letter with three simple bullet points. that's the entire proposal to deal with the fiscal cliff and starts out with the sentence that's remarkable, tamron. first sentence is because the election is a status quo, both sides have to compromise. they didn't see what happened. they just dismissed it as a status quo election and this is not just speaker boehner we eric cantor and paul ryan, kevin mccarthy. the entire...
115
115
Dec 1, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 115
favorite 0
quote 0
some very insightful reporting. >>> 31 days out to the fiscal cliff. we will go live to see what the president is saying to house leaders and whether that will keep us any further away from the edge. >>> also, how did the president capture the latino vote? was it as simple as embracing immigration reform or was it something else? we'll talk about that, as well. you're watching msnbc, the place for politics. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] everyone deserves the gift of all day pain relief. this season, discover aleve. all day pain relief with just two pills.
some very insightful reporting. >>> 31 days out to the fiscal cliff. we will go live to see what the president is saying to house leaders and whether that will keep us any further away from the edge. >>> also, how did the president capture the latino vote? was it as simple as embracing immigration reform or was it something else? we'll talk about that, as well. you're watching msnbc, the place for politics. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] everyone deserves the gift of all day pain...
121
121
Nov 29, 2012
11/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 121
favorite 0
quote 0
>>> plus, are we seeing the first signs of republicans giving ground on the fiscal cliff? oklahoma's tom cole, a member of congress says the grand old party should take president obama's view, extend bush tax cuts for all but the top 2%. that's a sign some republicans may be open to higher rates for the rich. >>> is it possible negotiators could learn something from the most important movie out there right now "lincoln." doris kearns goodwin joins us. >>> let me finish with how lincoln outlawed slavery for good and how he did it using politics. this is "hardball," the place for politics. that's one smart board. what else does it do, reverse gravity? [ laughs ] [ laughs ] [ whooshing ] tell me about it. why am i not going anywhere? you don't believe hard enough. a smarter way to shop around. now that's progressive. call or click today. [ grunting ] >>> how's this for irony? mitt romney has finally captured 47% of america. remember this video that sunk the romney campaign? >> there are 47% of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. 47% who are with him, wh
>>> plus, are we seeing the first signs of republicans giving ground on the fiscal cliff? oklahoma's tom cole, a member of congress says the grand old party should take president obama's view, extend bush tax cuts for all but the top 2%. that's a sign some republicans may be open to higher rates for the rich. >>> is it possible negotiators could learn something from the most important movie out there right now "lincoln." doris kearns goodwin joins us. >>>...
217
217
Dec 3, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 217
favorite 0
quote 0
as we come to the end of this fiscal cliff, republicans have to choose. do they call for $5 trillion in tax increases over the next ten years or are they going to allow the middle class tax cuts to proceed? that's their choice, and i think people like tom cole recognize that it's unsustainable to take the position that nobody gets tax relief because they hold out for folks with 250,000 and over to get this extra tax cut on the portion of their income above 250,000. after all, what the president is saying on that part of your income above 250,000, you're going back to the clinton era tax raites, which is 4 cents on the dollar. >> congressman van hollen, thank you for your time. we'll see what happens next. thank you, sir. >>> we could soon learn who the president wants to be the next secretary of state. chuck todd says a decision could come this week, but as we get closer to a decision, the partisan divide over the potential nomination of susan rice, considered the front-runner, seems to be intensifying. >> when it comes to susan rice as far as lindsey gra
as we come to the end of this fiscal cliff, republicans have to choose. do they call for $5 trillion in tax increases over the next ten years or are they going to allow the middle class tax cuts to proceed? that's their choice, and i think people like tom cole recognize that it's unsustainable to take the position that nobody gets tax relief because they hold out for folks with 250,000 and over to get this extra tax cut on the portion of their income above 250,000. after all, what the president...
126
126
Dec 4, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 126
favorite 0
quote 0
in a new interview president obama says a deal to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff is still possible but not without higher taxes for the wealthy. the president sat down with bloomberg for his first tv interview since the election and the fiscal cliff face off. he reiterated that lying in the sand is higher taxes for the wealthy. he gave republicans some room to maneuver. >> the issue right now that's relevant is the acknowledgment that if we're going to raise revenues that are sufficient to balance with the very tough cuts that we've already made and the further reforms and entitlemented ientitlements i'm prepared to make, we have to see the rates on the top 2% go up. we're not getting a deal without it. understand the reason for that. it's not me being stubborn or partisan, it's a matter of math. >> and the gop plan, which was unveiled yesterday, includes $800 bill onin new taxes made through closing loopholes and deductions and not raising rates. compare that to the president's plan and that's about half of what the white house asked for. republicans propose 600 billion in entitle
in a new interview president obama says a deal to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff is still possible but not without higher taxes for the wealthy. the president sat down with bloomberg for his first tv interview since the election and the fiscal cliff face off. he reiterated that lying in the sand is higher taxes for the wealthy. he gave republicans some room to maneuver. >> the issue right now that's relevant is the acknowledgment that if we're going to raise revenues that are sufficient...
123
123
Dec 4, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 123
favorite 0
quote 0
to blame republicans and just 27% the president if they don't agree on a fiscal cliff. we know that after the election, 60% of people said let's raise taxes on the wealthiest. what more does john boehner need? >> i don't understand the republicans' thinking on this. i really don't. this is power politics. they don't have the leverage in this situation. if they don't cut a deal within the next 30 days, you're going to see tax rates rise on all americans. you're going to see huge cuts in the defense budget. we're probably going to have a double dip recession, and until the congress then gets its act together to fix it and lower rates on the middle class, you will have the republicans essentially responsible for raising tax rates on the middle class. i can't imagine, again, bill krystal said this yesterday. i can't imagine why the republicans would want to be known as raising tacks xes on t middle class. >> thank you both. next, the president reacts to speaker boehner. stay with us. this is sheldon, whose long dy setting up the news starts with arthritis pain and a choice.
to blame republicans and just 27% the president if they don't agree on a fiscal cliff. we know that after the election, 60% of people said let's raise taxes on the wealthiest. what more does john boehner need? >> i don't understand the republicans' thinking on this. i really don't. this is power politics. they don't have the leverage in this situation. if they don't cut a deal within the next 30 days, you're going to see tax rates rise on all americans. you're going to see huge cuts in...
188
188
Dec 3, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 188
favorite 0
quote 1
you guys are willing to go off the fiscal cliff? >> it republicans are not willing to let rates go back up, and we think they should go back to the clinton levels, a the a time when the american economy was doing exceptionally well, then there will not be an agreement. >> while geithner was drawing a line in the sand, house speaker john boehner was busy trying to lift his jaw off the flar after geithner presented the president's debt reduction plans to him last week. >> i was just flabbergasted. i looked at him and said you can't be serious. i have just never seen anything like it. >> yes, indeed, it seems that republicans are not quite sure what to make of the president taking a harder line across the bargaining table. >> you know, the president's idea of a negotiation is roll over and do what i ask. >> i think we're going over the cliff. it's pretty clear to me they made a political calculation. the president's plan is just, quite frankly, a joke. >> i'm not sure about that, senator graham, but there will be plenty of time for jok
you guys are willing to go off the fiscal cliff? >> it republicans are not willing to let rates go back up, and we think they should go back to the clinton levels, a the a time when the american economy was doing exceptionally well, then there will not be an agreement. >> while geithner was drawing a line in the sand, house speaker john boehner was busy trying to lift his jaw off the flar after geithner presented the president's debt reduction plans to him last week. >> i was...
129
129
Dec 7, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 129
favorite 0
quote 0
obama is taking his fiscal cliff plan to the people. will republicans buckle under public pressure? msnbc's political analyst michael eric dyson and democratic strategist donna gentile-o'donnell will weigh in on that tonight. >>> welcome back to "the ed show." president obama has put house speaker john boehner and republicans in a box on fiscal cliff negotiations. and the evidence is mounting. president obama stayed on offense today, visiting the santana family in northern virginia whose taxes will go up more than $4,000 in 2013 if middle class tax cuts aren't extended. >> i'm encouraged to see that there's been some discussion on the part of republicans acknowledging the need for additional revenue. as i've indicated, the only way to get the kind of revenue for a balanced deficit reduction plan is to make sure that we're also modestly increasing rates for people who can afford it. folks like me. just to be clear, i'm not going to sign any package that somehow prevents the top rate from going up for folks at the top 2%. >> the concerted
obama is taking his fiscal cliff plan to the people. will republicans buckle under public pressure? msnbc's political analyst michael eric dyson and democratic strategist donna gentile-o'donnell will weigh in on that tonight. >>> welcome back to "the ed show." president obama has put house speaker john boehner and republicans in a box on fiscal cliff negotiations. and the evidence is mounting. president obama stayed on offense today, visiting the santana family in northern...
248
248
Nov 29, 2012
11/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 248
favorite 0
quote 0
he says it's not a fiscal cliff, it's more like a fiscal slope. there are some people that occupy the left side of the american political spectrum that would agree with howard dean saying listen, it's really not that big of a deal as deficit hawks are making it out to be. you would disagree, i would guess. >> well, i think howard is disagreeing a little bit, too. i think howard is saying it's time for meaningful deficit reduction. howard's become a deficit hawk. i think howard and i would disagree probably on some of the elements of what constitutes -- >> no, but he's saying it's not a disaster if it happens. >> well, i was going to get to that point. the fiscal cliff itself, howard is right, it's a slope. on day one the economy does not collapse and go into recession. but i worry a lot about the markets. the market reaction to going over the cliff, particularly if we go over the cliff in disarray where there's really no plan. everything's broken down. nobody knows where anybody is. i think that could be pretty ugly in the markets. having said tha
he says it's not a fiscal cliff, it's more like a fiscal slope. there are some people that occupy the left side of the american political spectrum that would agree with howard dean saying listen, it's really not that big of a deal as deficit hawks are making it out to be. you would disagree, i would guess. >> well, i think howard is disagreeing a little bit, too. i think howard is saying it's time for meaningful deficit reduction. howard's become a deficit hawk. i think howard and i would...
204
204
Dec 3, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 204
favorite 0
quote 0
forget about the fiscal cliff back and forth. heard from boehner and geithner that you talked about but, listen, some things looking better in europe this morning actually. i know it's boring but the greek deal looks a little more likely. germany making positive comments so stock futures are up. big story in "the wall street journal" about how the rest of the world is slow to get on the natural gas bandwagon which could be good for the united states and canada because they need gas around the world which means we may be the more likely go-to source and delta airlines reportedly in the hunt for half a stake in virgin atlantic. they covet some new landing spots at heathrow airport. barnicle can fly back and forth on london to get a new castle or a guinness or whatever his choice is. and i'm going to leave you with this. it is the 20th birthday of the text message. on this date 20 years ago, it was created. and now university students send an average of 3,200 text messages per month rof, lol, omg. >> brian, quickly, back to the virg
forget about the fiscal cliff back and forth. heard from boehner and geithner that you talked about but, listen, some things looking better in europe this morning actually. i know it's boring but the greek deal looks a little more likely. germany making positive comments so stock futures are up. big story in "the wall street journal" about how the rest of the world is slow to get on the natural gas bandwagon which could be good for the united states and canada because they need gas...
248
248
Dec 2, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 248
favorite 0
quote 0
fiscal cliff blame. nasa's decision on doomsday 2012. . and kim kardashian sparks a proprotest. >>> we have new chilling details in the tragedy that stuns kansas city. they are prepping for gameday just 20 24 hours after a suicide. tom chong is live where this tragic story ended. tom, good day to you. there what's it like there? >> reporter: it is subdued. we stopped at the tailgating activities. there is tailgating going on but the mood is heavy. just 24 hours ago when belcher pulled out a gun is and shot himself. that event left this team in shock. shots rang out at this home, the victim 22-year-old cassandra perkins. >> when we arrived a lady came out and said her daughter had been shot by -- she died a short time later. belcher shot perkins following an argument. the two were parents of a 3-month-old baby. just 10 minutes after the murder, belcher was next to the stadium with a gun talking to his coach and general manager. he thanked them for what they did for him. then pulled the trigger. >> as officers pulled up, they heard the gunsh
fiscal cliff blame. nasa's decision on doomsday 2012. . and kim kardashian sparks a proprotest. >>> we have new chilling details in the tragedy that stuns kansas city. they are prepping for gameday just 20 24 hours after a suicide. tom chong is live where this tragic story ended. tom, good day to you. there what's it like there? >> reporter: it is subdued. we stopped at the tailgating activities. there is tailgating going on but the mood is heavy. just 24 hours ago when belcher...
205
205
Dec 7, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 205
favorite 0
quote 0
the fiscal cliff and the debt ceiling, are they connected? >> the white house wants them to be connected. they actually think if neck get a deal decoupling the bush tax cuts, having entitlement reform in dealing with the debt ceiling that is getting a raise and not having to worry about it for another couple of years, that's what they want. house republicans have indicated that, look, they actually might want it to kick the can down the road, make a deal on taxes but kick it down the road where they have more leverage. president obama was asked about that earlier this week and said he doesn't want to play the debt ceiling game anymore. that's where republicans have more leverage than then do on other matters. >> all right. senior political editor mark murray, have a great weekend, sir. >> i want to bring in congressman peter welch from vermont. good to see you again. talked to you last weekend on msnbc. at that point you told me that you thought there was a 50/50 shot we'd go off the so-called fiscal cliff. today speaker boehner said talks we
the fiscal cliff and the debt ceiling, are they connected? >> the white house wants them to be connected. they actually think if neck get a deal decoupling the bush tax cuts, having entitlement reform in dealing with the debt ceiling that is getting a raise and not having to worry about it for another couple of years, that's what they want. house republicans have indicated that, look, they actually might want it to kick the can down the road, make a deal on taxes but kick it down the road...
147
147
Dec 7, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 147
favorite 0
quote 1
and 53% say they trust president obama to avoid the fiscal cliff. compared to just 36% who trust republicans in congress. also today speaker boehner said he wouldn't rule out an agreement to raise taxes as part of a fiscal cliff deal. but he also said there's no progress. this is what winning looks like. joining me now, e.j. dionne and thank you both for your time. senator solis, the jobless rate is at a four-year low. that's quite an achievement. >> yes, reverend re. but we still need to do more. in sectors like retail and health care and tourism and hospitality. we need to do more because people are still suffering. we've got to put jobs back in infrastructure and construction and put our teachers. that's why the president is working so hard so we don't go off the fiscal cliff so we keep the most vulnerable people out of harm's way. to pay $2,200. we've got to talk about fairness here and i'm very excited that the public is listening to the message that the president has made very, very clear. >> 146,000 new private sector jobs last month but one
and 53% say they trust president obama to avoid the fiscal cliff. compared to just 36% who trust republicans in congress. also today speaker boehner said he wouldn't rule out an agreement to raise taxes as part of a fiscal cliff deal. but he also said there's no progress. this is what winning looks like. joining me now, e.j. dionne and thank you both for your time. senator solis, the jobless rate is at a four-year low. that's quite an achievement. >> yes, reverend re. but we still need to...
143
143
Dec 4, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 143
favorite 0
quote 0
six governors, democrats, and republicans weigh in on the fiscal cliff today. what will they tell president obama about the spending cuts and tax increases now just 28 days away? >> we must reign in our out of control spending. >> reporter: republicans have an offer, $800 billion in new taxes, half what the president wanted. $600 billion saved in part by making americans wait until they're 67 to get medicare. plus more cuts totalling $2.2 trillion. but no tax hikes for the wealthy. >> that's just not going to happen. >> reporter: the pentagon could take the biggest hit from president obama told defense experts monday, don't worry. >> even as we make very tough fiscal choices, we're going to keep investing in these programs. >> reporter: he went online on youtube and twitter explaining why he thinks the rich should pay more. going over the fiscal cliff could cost america jobs. >> we're only expanding 2% right now. it needs to be considerably higher to bring more people off unemployment. >> reporter: for the jobless, president obama is asking congress for million
six governors, democrats, and republicans weigh in on the fiscal cliff today. what will they tell president obama about the spending cuts and tax increases now just 28 days away? >> we must reign in our out of control spending. >> reporter: republicans have an offer, $800 billion in new taxes, half what the president wanted. $600 billion saved in part by making americans wait until they're 67 to get medicare. plus more cuts totalling $2.2 trillion. but no tax hikes for the wealthy....
139
139
Dec 7, 2012
12/12
by
MSNBCW
tv
eye 139
favorite 0
quote 0
that's part of the reason we want to avoid the fiscal cliff. it's actually too much deficit reduck sln too quickly in the wrong parts of the budget. you want a more thoughtful, thought out plan. on your point about the debt ceiling, we what we need is to have certainty, know where we're headed. not have multiple showdowns but the debt ceiling is only going to be increased significantly if it goes hand in hand with a big enough deal which has real changes in the budget. so the best thing we could do is put in place a balanced plan deals with all parts of the budget and really provides the kind of sense of security that households, small businesses, everybody needs to know so we can start planning for the economy and hopefully getting things growing back again. one of the things you see is that when your debt levels are as high as they are, in this country right now, that's a tamp on economic growth and can harm growth. that's the point we're at. we know that part of a growth strategy will have to be getting control of these deficits and debt and
that's part of the reason we want to avoid the fiscal cliff. it's actually too much deficit reduck sln too quickly in the wrong parts of the budget. you want a more thoughtful, thought out plan. on your point about the debt ceiling, we what we need is to have certainty, know where we're headed. not have multiple showdowns but the debt ceiling is only going to be increased significantly if it goes hand in hand with a big enough deal which has real changes in the budget. so the best thing we...